Project: M8 TRX6

[Greatscott]

Well, just about done with this. I just need to figure out something for a back bumper. I also want to come up with some way to add weight to the crane hook, until I have about nine or so inches of line out, it does not have enough weight to go down on its own.

The boom extension on this crane is painfully slow, so I did not extend it for the video, but it works.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi2awN5j2Us

 

[Greatscott]

I have added weights to the hook, and now it goes down on its own accord. I am not thrilled about the look, but it will do for now. I need need to come up with a hook keeper so that it does not beat the crap out of the rest of the truck when the truck is in motion.

I have a bumper on order, once it arrives I’ll draw up a mount for it. Sadly, printing will have to wait until I get my filament dryer, the humidity has gotten to my filament and causing jams.

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Zukiiholic]

Truly a Fantastic Build.
Love the crane, how ya got it all to work and hide the Electronics.
Even the 1:1 cranes got weighted hooks.

 

[Greatscott]

Well, Christmas came early, yesterday I received the back bumper, and my filament dryer.

After a couple of hours worth of measuring, drawing, and remeasuring, the bumper mount is on my Prusa Mini, being printed...

Back_Bumper_Mount Front by Scott O, on Flickr

Back_Bumper_Mount Back by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Greatscott]

A night's worth of printing, along with some soldering and the back bumper is none. At this point, the only thing that I really need to do to put a fork in this thing is to make a cover for the battery tray.

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Greatscott]

And done...

There are a couple of little things that I want to go back an make better, but for the most part, I am done with this build.
Things on the list to change:
• Find a better method of attaching the wood planks
• Design a better pedestal under the crane deck
• Find a way to speed up the boom, right now it take two full minutes to move in each direction
• Rebuild the front tires with stiffer foams
• Put blinking lights on the HPU, with control from the remote

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[durok]

Looks suitably BURLY!

Nice work..."thumbsup"

 

[Levi]

Wow looks awesome. Good work greatscott. Now you need to find some goods to carry around. It might even need a trailer to go with it.

 

[Greatscott]

Thanks for the comments.

I have been thinking about getting a trailer for it. Other than I liking the way it looks below the bumper, having a trailer behind this rig is why I installed the pin-hitch. I made the mount stout enough to take some weight, and the screws for it are backed with nuts.

I am not sure of the style of trailer I would use for this, I have been looking on Amazon for something that would look right behind it. I might also get some trailer axles and make a flatbed trailer using the four remain TRX6 wheels I have.

 

[Greatscott]

One of the ideas I have been toying with for this build is a trailer, but not really knowing what I was going to do for a back bumper, I didn't really know if it would work. In designing the back bumper mount I went ahead and added a pin hitch, pretty much solidified my plans for a trailer. Initially, I thought about designing and building one with a mixture of bought hardware like springs, shocks, and maybe axles, and printed parts. Well, looking at the time and money that would take, and decided to go with a Cross RC trailer kit instead.

I need to pull everything out and separate the parts by what color they are going to be painted.

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Greatscott]

The trailer is just about done. Of course I see about a dozen different things to modify.

Almost have the electrical finished, just waiting for the conformal coating to dry. The trailer kit came with its own LED kit, but I had a hunch that it was only rated for 3VDC. Sure enough, I connected it up to 6VDC and the LEDs gave one nice bright flash, and they were gone.

To my amazement, the TRX6 wheels work on the axles with no mods, didn’t think they would.

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Gula]

Looks great! I've been eyeing that body since I found it a week ago. Maybe some other time I'll buy it. What are you going to school for ? If you need some stiff foams, I can send you a set or super stiff foams from a Capo 8x8.

 

[Greatscott]

Here are some disconnected thoughts on my trailer build...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52w2iIQzzaI

 

[Greatscott]

For now, I think I am done. I'm still not that crazy about the trailer box, but I am going to see if it grows on me. If not, I will change it.
One thing I did want to change was the back bumper. It came with a fake rubber hitch to be bolted to it, and I wanted a pin hitch like the truck has. The bolt pattern and recess were not quite right so I designed and printed up another one. The first version I designed had light bezels, but, as simple as it is, I really don't want to redo the lights. Instead I put holes for shackle brackets.
And with that, the rest of the truck is done. I drove the whole mess around and was surprised that the motor was not even warm, the truck and trailer together are 22lbs. I'll likely get some running video of it tomorrow.
I hate to say it, but have thought about doing another one that is just a flatbed with no crane.

Untitled by Scott O, on Flickr

by Scott O, on Flickr

by Scott O, on Flickr

by Scott O, on Flickr

by Scott O, on Flickr

by Scott O, on Flickr

 

[Levi]

The trailer looks great. Looks like a good match too. Now that your done with your build you can find a new project to build. Unless there's something else to add on too.

 

[Greatscott]

The trailer looks great. Looks like a good match too. Now that your done with your build you can find a new project to build. Unless there's something else to add on too.

Many thanks!!!

No new builds for now, and is something I have planned. I have a French cleat system I want to put in to provide more space for my RCs; it will also be more flexible and easier to configure when I get rid of RCs, and when I get others.

Aside from the French cleat shelving, my big push will be to go back and correct the sins from my passed builds. Right now I am reworking the lighting and jack control for my King Hauler trailer. What I had before worked, but it was cumbersome and kind of a pain to control. I also have an issue or two in the King Hauler itself that I want to change.

http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/elec...out-how-do-you-wire-thing-up.html#post6092720

After that I will likely rip into my TRX4 Tonka Tow Truck build, gut it, and correct the mistakes I made. The driving and light portion of the truck worked great, but the boom and boom winches never worked right. Having the ability to design and print parts will help a lot., something I couldn't do when I built it. Also, I really hate the radio it has in it, so I am going to change that out as well.

http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/traxxas-trx-4/605076-shorty-project-works.html

The big reason I was able to make a big push on this project was summer break and no college. School is back in, and my build time will be very limited until next summer.